Case Number 17835

MAD DOG MORGAN

The Charge

Beaten, Branded, Brutalized...but Never Broken.

Opening Statement

The reign of Dennis Hopper as Voice of the New Generation of American
Filmmakers came and went so quickly that if it weren't for the enduring, and
somewhat curious, popularity of Easy Rider, he might have long ago been
resigned to Hollywood footnote.

But Hopper had Easy Rider, and unlike his co-stars and fellow
at-the-time New Generationers like Peter Fonda, Jack Nicholson, and Karen Black,
had been acting in high-profile projects for more than a decade prior, with
significant roles in Giant, Rebel Without a Cause, Gunfight at
the O.K. Corral, and Cool Hand Luke. With Easy Rider, Hopper,
then 33, became synonymous with all things "youth," and was perceived
as the visionary who would Pied Piper the under-30s back to the Hollywood fold
by creating movies that "spoke to" the hippies, dreamers, drifters,
and all those not aligned with the two middles -- class and age.

Unfortunately, Hopper's follow-up, the bigger budgeted and even more
indulgent The Last Movie, only proved that the studio execs really
couldn't trust anyone over 30. The spectacular failure of this film, along with
Hopper's very public drug experimentations, lefty-loosie politics, and bizarre
personal life (including a week-long marriage to Michelle Phillips), cost him
his exalted perch, and Hopper was left to wander in the artistic desert for a
spell, the few films he made either low budget, foreign, or both. He made a
comeback, of sorts, at the end of the '70s with his self-referencing supporting
role in Apocalypse Now, went on to direct the little-seen but borderline
brilliant Out of the Blue, and was lauded for two roles in 1986: his
psycho-fiend turn in Blue Velvet, and his touching role as a drunk in
Hoosiers, which netted him an Oscar nomination.

Mad Dog Morgan was made in Australia in the mid-'70s, during Hopper's
time away from Hollywood. Rather than an exploitation film featuring a
burned-out hasbeen, this is an exciting and original film, with Hopper giving a
virtuoso performance as a real-life 19th century outlaw.

Facts of the Case

The mid-19th century, and Daniel Morgan (Dennis Hopper) has come to Australia
from the UK in search of gold. Unfortunately, he runs afoul of the law and winds
up sentenced to 12 years hard labor in a prison camp. In the camp, Morgan is
branded on his hand, raped by some crazies, and generally brutalized. After six
years, he's released and embarks on a life of crime, seeking vengeance against
the society that condemned him. He teams up with an Aborigine named Billy (David
Gulpilil, The Last Wave), who teaches him to survive in -- and appreciate
-- the wild.

The Evidence

Director Philippe Mora's film is an atmospheric, visually striking outback
western. It's a bit light on story conventions -- Mora skates past details here
and there, and we're often left without a sense of the time frame. In the
opening minutes, we get a gruesome attack on a Chinese camp, where Morgan and a
friend are smoking opium, and the ultraviolent death of Morgan's friend. From
there, we jump into Morgan committing a crime, and then to him being sentenced.
It's, frankly, a confusing set of scenes, and not a strong introduction to the
man we'll be spending the next hour and half with. More ghastliness follows in
the prison, but then Morgan is paroled, and again we get a not-very-interesting
crime (horse thievery).

About this time, Morgan meets Billy, and things pick up considerably. Hopper
finally has a character to play off, and the interplay between Morgan and his
Aborigine friend is fascinating. Though it's never explicit, the relationship
between the two is portrayed as something of a bushmen romance, with Morgan at
one point tenderly telling his pal, "You know I love you," and going
wild when poor Billy is injured in an ambush. There are barely any women to be
found here, although a bar maid is turned down when she offers herself to the
outlaw. We also get a foppish photographer and his pretty-boy assistant, which
just adds to the sense of this as a non-traditional western.

Dennis Hopper gives one of his strongest performances here. While the
character is all over the place -- deciding at one point to shave his beard so
he looks like Abraham Lincoln, and at another spending a strangely cordial
evening with a family he's intended to rob -- Hopper is decidedly focused,
almost laser-like. His Irish accent is a bit disconcerting at times, but he
offers a complete, and very physical, characterization. He's well supported by
Gulpilil, as well as recognizable Aussie actors Jack Thompson (Breaker
Morant), Bill Hunter (Gallipoli), and Wallas Eaton (The Last
Wave).

What Mora lacks in storytelling, he makes up for in visual splendor. This is
a remarkably beautiful film, shot on the actual Australian locations where
Morgan roamed by cinematographer Mike Molloy. The shot compositions are
breathtaking, and the action sequences fluid and startling. A haunting,
digideroo-heavy score contributes to the atmosphere.

Hot on the heels of its 2005 release of Mad Dog Morgan, Troma gives
us this two-disc limited edition -- "the shocking, uncut version." I
don't know how "limited" this edition is, but evidently, the
"uncut" part is pretty significant. From what I understand, Mad Dog
Morgan has never been shown uncut in the U.S. This version, evidently, puts
back some of the violent scenes that had been excised for U.S. consumption and
extends the rape sequence. The title here is actually Mad Dog, Mora's
original title and the one used for the Australian release.

The first disc contains the film along with an introduction and a few end
words from Mora. Both of these have a comfortable, conversational home-video
feel.

Disc Two features interviews, most of which were conducted by Mora.
"That's Our Mad Dog" is a 28-minute conversation between Hopper and
Mora that features a lot of background on Hopper and history. I'd thought this
might have been ported over from the earlier disc, which also featured a
conversation with Mora and Hopper, but the 2008 copyright suggests otherwise. An
"Interview with Director Philippe Mora" is just a shortened version of
his Disc One introduction. Mora also interviews/reminisces with cinematographer
Molloy and producer Richard Brennan. Although Mora stays behind the camera for
these -- and again, there's that whole home movie vibe -- both yield some very
cool anecdotes, particularly about working with the notoriously unpredictable
Hopper. We also get a rare Australian radio interview with Mora recorded around
the time the film was released in the U.S. A "Locations Featurette" is
actually just 44 seconds of some of the film's more impressive shots. Rounding
out the set are seven minutes of deleted scenes, a still gallery, a look at the
original pressbook, and a trailer.

The Rebuttal Witnesses

If Troma is going to release obscure cult favorites as "special
editions," then they need to start putting some effort into the tech.

This is one crappy transfer. Full screen, letterboxed, soft, with scratches
and blemishes, it appears to have been sourced from a VHS master. Given how
strong the visuals are, this lousy transfer is just a crime. Audio is marginally
better, but "rich" and "full" are not the words that come to
mind when listening to it. The lack of subtitles really hurts this one. The
extras are quite good, but this is a film that would really benefit from a
commentary track, which is not included here.

Closing Statement

Mad Dog Morgan is a cool '70s oddity. Featuring striking photography,
some intense violence, a skewed story, and a fascinating performance by Dennis
Hopper, this is at least worth a rental.

The Verdict

The film is certainly worth a look, and the extras are good, but the transfer
on this Troma disc makes us stop short of a full pardon.